


The Saints’ Woods

by holdyourbreathfornow



Series: HYBFN Freak Fam Stuff [4]
Category: Freak Fam - Fandom
Genre: AU of an AU, Found Family, Graphic descriptions of meat, Multi, Obsessive Behavior, Shifter AU, Soooo much longer than I originally planned, animal fighting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-21
Updated: 2019-08-21
Packaged: 2020-09-23 02:55:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,168
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20332882
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/holdyourbreathfornow/pseuds/holdyourbreathfornow
Summary: There are two packs in the Saints’ Woods and they’re always at war.





	The Saints’ Woods

They picked him up past midnight, wandering the only road that lead in or out of town. The Saints’ Woods was, after all, a small town. Almost too small to be called a town. Blood was leaking from the stranger’s face and he refused to talk with Ryan, who was driving the car that had picked him up, or Michael, who had been in the back sleeping after a hunting trip.

The two men had invited the stranger along and had driven him to Geoff’s house. Geoff, as the de facto leader of their little group, was expected to deal with any issues. As a man being woken up at 2 in the morning, he was a little more pissed off.

“This-” he said to the three men as he led them through to the kitchen, “-had better be ragingly important.”

A cat walk curled along the walls throughout the entirety of the house, culminating in a large, luxurious pet bed with pillows strewn about the edges. In the middle of the pile, a grey she-cat slept with her nose under her tail. 

Ryan stopped to scratch the ears of the cat and she purred in her sleep as the rest of the group settled at the table.

“We picked him up on the main road.” Michael started as Geoff leaned slightly across the table to examine the stranger with eyes that were startlingly keen for their sleepy look. “He hasn’t said anything to us.”

“He looks like the silent type.” Geoff agreed with a little nod to himself and smacked his knees with his hands, pushing himself up and shuffling into the kitchen. “Anyone want anything to drink?”

“Milk.” Ryan called and Geoff scoffed at the blond man from where he had his head shoved into the fridge. “What?!”

“You’re such a fucking dad, dude, holy shit.” Michael laughed and Ryan rolled his eyes, still scratching behind the cat’s ears. 

The stranger sat in the middle of the quiet chaos, eyes darting between each of the jeering men, and he relaxed a tiny amount.

-

Over time, the stranger learned more and more about the very strange, very large family that had taken him in. He learned that Geoff had a best friend named Jack, who was kind and mischievious with a bob of ginger hair, and that Ryan had a daughter, whom the stranger had yet to meet.

And finally, one morning, he decided The Fakes, as they called themselves, were trustworthy.

He cleared his throat as he sat at the breakfast table between Geoff and Ryan. Geoff was talking to Jack, and Ryan was feeding scraps to the cat, who curled around his neck like a fur scarf and purred so hard she vibrated with the force of it.

As soon as the stranger made a noise, all attention snapped to him. This was it, the moment they had obviously been waiting for. The Fakes were more than happy to take this strange wanderer in, but they also had to be sure he wasn’t dangerous.

“My name-” he paused to cough, the consequences of not talking for weeks having taken their toll, “-my name is Shirk.”

“It’s good to meet you, Shirk.” Ryan smiled kindly and reached up to flick at one of his cat’s ears. She squeaked and looked up at him. If Shirk didn’t know any better, he’d swear the she-cat was glaring at Ryan, who just kept smiling.

“Go get the others and shift back. I think it’s time we had a proper introduction.” 

And suddenly all of Shirk’s suspicions were confirmed.

With a quiet  _ mrrp _ , the cat uncoiled from Ryan’s neck and leaped to the floor, shooting from the room in a grey blur.

In the kitchen, Shirk heard the cat door rattle with the force of the cat’s exit.

“What’s going on?” He asked Geoff quietly. The older man only winked and pushed a glass of water into Shirk’s hands.

“You’re about to meet some of the Freak Fam.”

-

Shirk was herded into the backyard and pulled up short at the spectacle waiting for him.

Ryan’s cat was sat in the grass, blinking up at him with those mischievous eyes of hers. To her left, a badger huffed at Shirk before burying its nose back into the ground, powerful claws sending dirt flying behind it. Back by the fence, easily straddling a gate that came up to about Shirk’s waist, a deer stood, scratching their antlers on the fence as they shed velvet in long, bloody strips.

“What’s… Going on?” Shirk asked slowly and Ryan blinked at him before smiling.

“Have I ever talked about my daughter around you?”

“Don’t be stupid.” Geoff rolled his eyes and shook his head. “Of course you did. You can’t STOP talking about your daughter.” Ryan pointed a finger at the older man accusatorially, and his mouth opened as if he was about to speak.

However, it quickly became apparent he couldn’t think of anything to say, as his mouth clicked shut and he lowered his hand back to his side.

“...Damn you.” He muttered and Geoff grinned lazily at him. “Fine, whatever, I’m not here to argue. Shirk, I want you to meet three members of the Freak Fam. Disaster,-” the cat flicked her ears, “-Vinny,-” the badger re-emerged from the ground for a split second before diving back down, “-and Ace.” The deer snorted and fully stepped over the fence, trotting over to stand in front of Shirk, staring him dead in the eyes.

“What are you talking about.” Shirk asked, but there wasn’t really a question in his voice. He knew what they were saying, and fear was beginning to flood his veins with a cold accuracy.

“I think you know.” Geoff interrupted, and stepped forward. He nodded to the three animals and suddenly, they began to shift.

The cat reared up on her hind legs and grew taller, her hair receding under her skin and turning bright blue. When she was finished, a woman a couple years younger than Shirk stood before him, with her arms crossed over her chest. Her hair was dyed a bright blue and hung in waves to her shoulders. She waved at Shirk. He realized this was Disaster, Ryan’s daughter who he never stopped talking about. 

Ace was a little taller than Disaster, their hair a darker shade of blue. Pieces of deer velvet were still clinging to the spiky leather jacket they wore, and they grumbled under their breath as they hurriedly brushed it away.

And meanwhile, Vinny was still underground as a badger.

“Are you going to introduce Vinny?” Ryan asked his daughter and she shrugged, brushing a strand of hair out of her face.

“I’m not going to make them come out if they don’t want to. You know how shy they are.” The dirt pile Disaster stood next to shifted suddenly and the badger burst forth, rapidly shifting as they stood.

“It’s not that I’m shy, Sassy. It’s that I know who Shirk is.” Vinny hissed and they seemed scared. They kept Shirk in their line of sight, but they wouldn’t make eye contact with him.

“What are you talking about, honey?” Disaster asked quietly and laced her fingers with Vinny’s.

(Shirk ignored the way something in his chest twinged at that.)

“I mean, he’s a member of the Beasts.” Suddenly, everyone turned to Shirk and none of them had any of the kindness in their eyes he had grown used to seeing.

“Please,” he begged as he staggered a couple steps backwards and almost fell on his ass as he tripped over grass mounds. “Please. I can explain!”

“Let’s not lose our heads here.” Disaster interjected as she pushed past her father and Ace, who had both instinctively moved to shield her. “Shirk, look at me, sweetheart.” He shook his head and flinched when she reached out. 

Instead of withdrawing her hand, Disaster kept inching it forward until it rested on where Shirk’s own was curled over his chest. Gently, she pried his fingernails out of the fabric of his shirt and held his hand.

“Please look at me, Shirk.” She asked again and he slowly locked eyes with her, surprised to see that she was smiling at him. “I trust you. Okay?” He nodded and her smile grew a little more. “Good. Now let’s go inside and have a civil conversation.”

-

“It all started when one of the tiger shifters gave birth. She had been so proud of her litter, you know? Three or four little kits all just purring away in their mom’s arms.” Shirk had to stop and swallow. Disaster squeezed his hand again and he took a deep breath. “But Fabian was mad. He wanted to take her kits and… Drown them, in a sack. She had been part of his inner circle, and she wasn’t supposed to have relationships. No one had bothered to tell her that, though.”

“So what happened?” Ace asked, morbidly curious, and Vinny chuckled as they buried their elbow into the soft flesh below Ace’s ribs. The blue-haired shifter winced and snagged onto Vinny’s elbow, simply holding it like one would a hand.

“The tigress started fighting.” Shirk whispered, haunted by memories. “And the twins, a couple of fox shifters, took her down. I can’t forget her screaming…” He shuddered violently and hung his head.

Disaster leaned a little closer to him and when he didn’t flinch away, she hooked a hand into the crook of his elbow and silently let him gather himself.

“I ran away.” He said finally, once the shuddering had died down. “I couldn’t live like that anymore, couldn’t risk dying the same way she had. I can’t help wondering if they’re out there somewhere... Looking for me.”

“If they are, they won’t find you.” Geoff spoke finally, leaning forward and bracing his arms on the table. “I’m going to give you an option here, Shirk. Are you lisening?” When the younger man nodded miserably, Geoff plowed on. “I’m officially offering to let you join our pack.”

“But I was a member of the Beasts.” Shirk whispered and Geoff nodded in acknowledgement. 

“Yeah. And you’re not anymore.” He looked around the room, at the tentative expressions on several faces, and the drawn-out exhaustion written across Shirk’s. “Fine. Let’s break this meeting up for now. Disaster, go let Shirk rest up. I think there are a couple of people who want to discuss some things.”

“Ace. Vinny.” When the two shifters’ attention snapped to her, she jerked her head to the door, already pulling Shirk and herself to their feet.

“Thank you.” Shirk told Disaster quietly as the four of them moved down the hallway and upstairs. Disaster smiled at him and gently knocked their shoulders together.

“Of course.”

“I’m sorry for telling everyone.” Vinny apologized, inserting themself on Shirk’s other side, and he shook his head.

“No, don’t say you’re sorry. I get why you did it. You just wanted to protect your family.”

“Plus, badgers are territorial!” Ace piped up as they leaned on Disaster, and Shirk actually smiled as Vinny snorted and Disaster rolled her eyes. 

And he relaxed slightly.

-

A week later, Shirk was outside with Disaster, who was climbing in a tree in her shifter form, when two birds of prey began circling overhead. Shirk shaded his eyes and stared up at them.

Disaster noticed he’d gotten distracted and leaped from the tree, shifting back as she jogged to the middle of Geoff’s expansive backyard, where she could also see the birds.

“It’s Gavin and Lindsay.” She told Shirk, before nudging him out of the comfortable sprawl he’d taken in a lawn chair. “They were on patrol today. I guess they found something.”

She and Shirk headed inside just as the eagles landed in the front yard and shifted back.

“What’s going on?” Ryan asked without looking up. He was tending to a boiling pot on the stove and kept poking at it intently with a wooden spoon.

“Gavin and Lindsay are back from patrol early.” Disaster reported and continued through to the living room just as Lindsay and Gavin came in the front door.

“What did you see?” She asked and Gavin’s mouth twisted in disgust. Lindsay sighed and combed a hand through her hair, taking the feather tangled in there and tucking it behind her ear. 

“The Beasts left us a message.” She said and fished her phone out of her pocket. She tapped on it quickly and then passed it to Disaster. The younger woman took the phone and looked at the screen, Shirk peering over her shoulder.

“Oh, that’s disgusting.” Disaster wrinkled her nose and Shirk looked vaguely green.

“Not to mention a waste of some perfectly good meat.” Gavin sighed and Shirk was definitely turning green now.

The picture Lindsay had shown the two of them was a pile of steaks, chicken wings and other edible meat. In the photo, Gavin stood next to the pile for a height reference, and it came up to his waist.

“Well, that’s a message if I’ve ever seen one. Was there a note with it?”

“In fact, there was.” Gavin fished a slip of paper from his jacket pocket and presented it to Disaster with a flourish. She rolled her eyes and took it from him, then she cleared her throat and read it out loud.

_ “Next full moon at the usual spot. Bring the traitor.” _

“During the full moon?” Shirk asked, shocked, and Disaster simply shrugged.

While the two packs had met before, never before had they met during the full moon. The full moon was for teaching children to shift, training them in fighting and hunting. 

“I think we’d better have another meeting.” Disaster murmured under her breath, and reached up to pinch the bridge of her nose.

-

“This is insane, we shouldn’t be doing this.” Shirk kept muttering under his breath. The Fakes and the Freak Fam, as the combined pack they were, were marching deep into the forest. Shirk walked between Disaster and Vinny, and twice they had had to grab im as he tried to run. He wasn’t running out of fear, but because he didn’t want to see the new family he’d become a part of be destroyed by the toxic family he had left.

The branches overhead that hid the night sky from view vanished gradually until the pack emerged into a clearing. They were alone and Geoff broke away from the pack, turning to face them and clasping his hands together.

“Alright, everyone, you should probably go ahead and shift now. It’ll keep you quiet, and God knows we don’t want any fights breaking out with these people. I’ll remain human, along with Shirk, Ryan, Disaster and Jack.” 

  
  
  


There was a scattered sound of agreement and then the rustling of cloth and cracking of joints as the pack shifted.

“Scared?” Jack asked Shirk, watching the younger man wring his hands like he was trying to rip them off.

“I would prefe to not get the majority of the pack killed, so if that makes me scared, then-” He was interrupted by Disaster jostling their shoulders together and grinning at him.

“It’s going to be fine, Shirk. Trust me.” Shirk hesitated for a long, quiet moment, but then he sighed and nodded.

Just in time, too, as animals flooded into the clearing from the opposite side. Among the hoard of fur and feathers stood Fabian, grinning at Shirk as if they were two old friends reuniting for the first time in a long while. 

“Why have you called this meeting?” Geoff asked just as Fabian opened his mouth, and the rival pack leader arched an eyebrow.

“Well, Ramsey, isn’t it obvious? I’ve come so that you can give me my man back.” Shirk bristled at that, but Disaster’s sharp nails digging into his arm kept any smart-ass remarks safely inside his mind.

“He isn’t your man.” Geoff answered calmly and the smile on Fabian’s face fell for a moment, showing the rage he always worked so hard to keep hidden. “And he definitely isn’t going back with you after what he’s told us.”

“Oh, has he been giving you some insider information?” Fabian turned his cold stare on Shirk, whostood his ground instead of flinching away like he wanted to. “Now, Shirk, you know that’s not playing fair. Unless you’re planning to come back and do the same for us.”

“Attention back on me, Fabian.” Geoff snapped his fingers mockingly and when Fabian glowered at him, he merely grinned. “Listen, the only thing Shirk has told us is that y’all made him need some major fucking therapy. He han’t exactly given us the entire playbook.”

“How am I supposed to believe you?” Fabian asked and Geoff rolled his eyes. 

“I honestly don’t care whether you believe me or not, Fabian. What I do care about is not sending one of mine back with a pack who kills their own for stupid offenses.”

“Oh, of course that’s what gets your tail in a knot. Not the possibility of winning in a fight, not getting more territory for your pack. No, it’s the fact that maybe everybody isn’t happy all the time!” Fabian stalked towards Geoff, and several of the shifters in the older man’s pack started growling. 

“Fabian, get out of my space or I won’t be responsible for what one of my pack does.”

“Is that a threat, Ramsey?” Fabian asked mockingly, pushing Geoff. The older man didn’t budge, and leaned in a little closer to Fabian.

“Nah, Fabian. It’s not a threat.” He grinned and leaned away, linking his hands behind his back. “It’s a  _ promise _ .”

“Fine, Ramsey. Keep Shirk. A little… Gift from me to you.”

And finally Shirk couldn’t keep his mouth shut anymore.

“I was never yours to keep or give away, Fabian.” Disaster winced from where she stood next to Shirk, and Ryan sighed, turning his face up to the sky and screwing his eyes shut.

“Watch it, Shirk.” Fabian spat his name like it was poison and stopped in front of them, ignoring Disaster baring her teeth and hissing quietly. “You don’t want to make me any angrier.”

“We’re in a full moon truce, there’s nothing you can do. Tonight, anyway.”

“Oh yeah?” Fabian asked and his eyes gleamed for a moment in the moonlight before it vanished behind a cloud. “Watch me.” 

He shifted into a wolverine and the four Fakes shifted as well, Shirk and Ryan becoming wolves while Geoff became a ram and Disaster returned to her cat form. Fabian leaped for Shirk’s throat, but Ryan barrelled into his side, sending the wolverine skidding into the brush.

The entire clearing exploded into chaos, both packs rushing for each other and consumed by bloodlust.

Disaster darted under legs and around teeth and claws, keeping her tail pressed to Shirk’s side. She was looking for Ace and Vinny, who, if she knew them as well as she thought she did, were probably in over their heads.

“There they are.” Shirk huffed, pausing to claw a bird out of the sky that had been diving with its claws aimed for his eyes.

“Of course they’re right in the middle of that mob.” Disaster sighed before she and Shirk descended into the fray. They bit and scratched their way through until they finally got through. Ace was lifting smaller animals up with their antlers and throwing them while Vinny was fighting more hand-to hand.

“Nice of you to join us!” Ace yelled over the noise and Disaster flicked her ear at them.

“I knew Fabian was psychotic, but this is on a whole other level.” She huffed, dodging around a set of claws and ending up sheltering under Ace, careful to not get stepped on. “I mean, starting a fight during the full moon? That’s crossing a line I didn’t know existed.”

“We need to move.” Shirk said, stepping back until one of his legs bumped into one of Vinny’s, the badger shifter jolting in shock. “We’re getting surrounded here and I’m not sure how much I like our odds.”

“And how do you propose we pull off your grand escape?” Disaster asked and Shirk wgged his tail with a baring of his teeth meant to be a smile.

-

  
“I hate this!” Vinny yelled as they were pushed onto Ace’s back and Disaster leaped up after them. “I would rather fight the fucking hoard!”

“Shut up and hang on.” Shirk huffed before smacking Ace with his tail. “Let’s go.”

“Let’s do this!” Ace yelled and Shirk followed after them as they plowed over smaller animals and dodged the larger ones. They occasionally winced when Disaster or Vinny dug their claws in too tight, but otherwise Shirk felt like his plan might actually work.

And then Fabian barrelled him over.

The two of them rolled across the ground, teeth and claws flashing as they each went for the other’s throat.

“Shirk!” He heard Disaster yell his name, but he was too busy fighting to stay alive.

“If I can’t have you-” Fabian huffed as his jaw closed dangerously close to Shirk’s neck, “-then no one can!”

“Oh, that’s not creepy at all.” Ryan called before he joined the fight and successfully pried Fabian off of Shirk. The wolverine hissed and swiped at Ryan, bloody scratches blooming across his muzzle and causing the older wolf to yelp.

“I was never yours to have, Fabian.” Shirk growled lowly as he and Fabian began circling each other.

“Why do you think the Beasts accepted you in the first place?” The other man laughed and ice flooded along Shirk’s spine. “You were always mine, Shirk, you just never realized it. So come back with us. We’ll leave the Fakes alone, and everything will be fine again.”

“Changes need to happen, Fabian! You can’t keep killing pack mates without telling the rest of us why.”

“I AM THE LEADER!” Fabian bellowed and dove for Shirk.

Time seemed to slow in Shirk’s eyes and he took a deep breath, rolling his shoulders and listening to the joints pop into place. Then, just as Fabian came within reach, Shirk dodged around the wolverine’s claws and clamped his jaw into Fabian’s neck.

The wolverine flailed wildly and his claws swiped at Shirk’s muzzle and neck, thugh none of the strikes were deep enough or painful enough for Shirk to release his death grip.

When Fabian’s flailing grew weak, Shirk turned and took off at a trot, Disaster and Ryan flanking him as he dragged Fabian through the grass.

The battle around them slowly died down as the Beasts realized their leader was held in one of the Fakes’ mouth.

Fabian wasn’t dead, Shirk could feel him breathing. But he had gone limp and still to keep Shirk’s teeth from digging any further into the sensitive skin of his neck.

Geoff and Jack were standing side by side when Shirk finally found them, Geoff’s ram horns splashed with blood and Jack eying her claws critically.

Shirk stood before them and let his jaw fall open, Fabian dropping to the ground and staying there, body heavy and chest heaving with great gulps of air.

Gingerly, as if he thought Fabian was something dirty, Geoff reached out and pinned Fabian to the ground with a hoof. Then he looked up and over the mass of animals, both Fakes and Beasts.

“We came here today, drawn by the promise of a truce. We did not come to shed blood, we did not come to kill. Fabian, the leader of the Beasts, was the first to seek bloodshed. Today, the Fakes have defended themselves and one of their own. We will not hesitate to do so again.” And with that, he leaned in closer to Fabian, blowing hot air into the wolverine’s face. “Maybe it would be wise of you to remember that.”

“Let’s go home.” Ryan sighed, letting his daughter leap onto his back and curl up there, exhausted.

The two packs slowly leaked from the clearing, many limping and leaving trails of blood. 

Shirk walked between Ace and Vinny, and Disaster watched the three of them from her dad’s back with one half-opened eye. 

“Well, that was fun!” Ace said cheerily and shifted back to human. The rest of the pack followed suit, Disaster ending up being carried piggyback.

“I will lock you in the basement.” The blue-haired woman sighed and slid down from her father’s back before wandering back over to the trio. “But for now, I’m ready to go home and sleep for a month. Especially now that we don’t have to worry about the Beasts for awhile.” She squeezed in between Shirk and Vinny, looping one hand into each of their elbows. “What do you think, Shirk?”

Shirk tilted his head back and reached out to throw an arm over Ace’s shoulders, pulling them into his side as they laughed. 

“I think that sounds like an amazing idea, Disaster.”


End file.
